James Baquet

    The expression “All the world loves a lover” is derived from an essay on love by the American philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson. It means people are always happy to see a couple in love. James has a theory as to why.

    James sees his student, a boy named Herbert, looking dreamy.

    James: Hey, Herb, what’s up?

    Herbert: Oh, James. I’m the happiest guy alive!

    James: Don’t tell me...

    Herbert: YES! I’ve found my dream girl.

    James: Uh-oh. How can you be so sure?

    Herbert: Oh, she’s the most beautiful girl in the world, and...

    James: But pretty girls are a dime a dozen.

    Herbert: But she’s perfect. I’d marry her in a New York minute!

    James: Uh, Herb, isn’t that a little “over the top”?

    Herbert: Not at all! I’m head over heels!

    James: Just don’t do anything crazy in the heat of the moment.

    Herbert: Now, James, there’s method to my madness.

    James: Well, Herb, good luck. I guess when it comes to love, we’re all in the same boat. Maybe that’s why “All the world loves a lover.”

    Herbert: Thanks, James. But you’ll see: she may be on the fence about dating me now, but once she’s seen the old Herbie Magic, I’ll be in like Flynn.

    James: You mean, you haven’t even gone out with her yet?

    Herbert: Gone out with her? We haven’t even met yet!

    James: Oy vey!

    Notes on the dialogue:

    — Looking dreamy: With a “faraway look,” as though daydreaming.

    — I’m the happiest guy alive: A cliché.

    — Don’t tell me...: Used when one has a guess, but doesn’t want his guess to be correct.

    — Dream girl: The girl one has dreamed of.

    — A dime a dozen: Common, easily found.

    — In a New York minute: Quickly; perhaps a little too quickly.

    — Over the top: Too much, excessive; used to describe outrageous exaggerations, for example.

    — Head over heels: Completely and absolutely in love.

    — In the heat of the moment: Hastily, without thinking of the consequences.

    — There’s method in one’s madness: A paraphrase of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, it means what seems to be a foolish course of action is really a well-thought-out plan.

    — We’re all in the same boat: We all experience the same feelings, have the same problems, want the same things, and so on.

    — To be on the fence about something: To be unsure, not deciding “which way to jump.”

    — The old Herbie Magic: Herbert is “hyping” himself, talking up his attractiveness.

    — To be in like Flynn: To get success easily, especially in romantic matters: “Buy her flowers and you’ll be in like Flynn.” Perhaps a reference to dashing early 20th-century Australian movie star Errol Flynn.

    — Oy vey!: A Yiddish expression of dismay.